Why you SHOULDN’T Delete your Facebook Account

“WHAT? They’re sharing my data, invading my privacy and displaying my private information to the public. Worse yet, they’re selling it to marketers who will use my face in ads to my friends!! Are you nuts???”

OK, stop shouting at me.

I’ve never been a big fan of Facebook for my personal account, but then I never thought I had any privacy to start with. Here’s the thing. If you delete your Facebook profile you lose what little control you do have.

Any images or stories you posted will be deleted except not if they ended up on your friends walls

Applications or games you allowed to email you will still be able to email you and it will be harder to turn them off.

You know those annoying invitations to events you keep getting? They might not stop either.

You won’t know what’s being said about you on Facebook. By your friends or anonymous sources

You could lose control of a part of your personal brand

Last but maybe most important: If you’ve ever set up an account using Facebook Connect on another site you will have to start over with a new login.

Some sites like Unvarnished actually require Facebook to verify your “humaness” when you log in.

So what should you do?

Turn off the setting that lets your photos be used in ads to your friendsOK, this is probably a band aid, since it could change at any time, but…

Go to “settings” and click on “privacy”.

Click the tab that reads “Facebook ads”.

Choose “no one” in the drop down box under “opt out of appearing in your friends’ Facebook Ads below”.

Remove any pictures you don’t want public and hope for the best.

Applications can now store your information indefinitely. Start removing them from your profile.

Click on “account” and then “Application Setttings”.

In the drop down, change “Show” to “Authorized”.

This will show you all the apps you’ve ever given permission to.

Click the “X” on the right of each application to delete it.

A pop-up will appear. Click “Remove” and then “Okay” to confirm.

Again, this is not a permanent fix and those applications may have already stored your data. But it’s a start.

Try the Green Safe
Green Safe exports your private data so you can purge that information from Facebook and letting only your friends see it on a tab called “my info”. Granted, you’re turning your personal data over to another Facebook application, but considering the developer’s blog, it looks like he’s as outraged as the rest of us and honestly trying to provide a solution.

These are a few of your options to protect your privacy. I’m done ranting about Facebook but I’d like to point out that they are not the only ones with your data. This whole thing has opened some eyes to what could happen with your personal information. It’s time to think about not over-sharing online.

“You could lose control of a part of your personal brand “? baloney, give it up by not taking it up, facebook is for sheep, if you can’t leave it you are weak!

Clintp1982

Facebook is evil!!! It is a bad joke, it is out of control, and it is shady as hell. WAKE UP!!!

Bluewood

Facebook is a joke really. More hype than substance (as you see corporations join the bandwagon, reminds me of the gold rush or dot com boom), and its all about group thought really. Delete your account.

Dirk

I deleted my account over Facebook privacy vote sham. Facebook has become nothing more than a data mining operation for Corporations. F-U Zuckerberg and FB. Just shills for corporate America at the expense of our privacy all for the sake of a train wreck IPO.

Don’t you keep track of your own photos? Are you some kind of an idiot?

shane

What a bunch of ridiculous arguments for keeping facebook. The best gems:

You won’t know what’s being said about you? I have news for you Janet, you don’t know what people say about you when they meet in person or over the phone. Although I bet they would talk about you a lot less, after all it’s much easier to gossip about people when you can see every little detail of their lives on facebook.

You won’t be able to turn emails off? Turn them off BEFORE you delete facebook

I believe you are too innocent and ignorant about the privacy on online. Let me tell you this. Just about a decade ago, an agent from CIA or NSA had to research and trace a person at least 1 ~ 2 years to dig the person’s background information (the place that the person was born, the school that the person went to, and so on). Guess what? Nowadays, they do not even have to chase one suspect for 1 year or anything. In fact, most of Facebook users proudly share about themselves to the public, thinking this is the trend for being “open-minded.”

My colleague and I had 2-week long business seminars about three years ago. During those sessions, we learned how “Facebook” and “Linkedin” could be very beneficial for our personal branding. Well, both of us still do not notice any advantage of posting the information on those websites. It is one of common and dangerous (and lame) excuse that Facebook usually creates to keep users using its service.

My advice is, be wise and learn more before you want to make constructive arguments against something that is far more logical than your current post.

I could not stop laughing while I was reading your post. Have fun with using Facebook and posting photos on there. I am sure many of male stalkers on Google will gladly do your favors.

get fucked

what an apologism ! disregard all of this spin
FACEBOOK isnt dangerous for any of those inconveniences
WAKE THE FUCK UP

Spencer

wussy!!!! delete it!!! “You won’t know what’s being said about you on Facebook. By your friends or anonymous sources”

seriously?? are you still in Junior High concerned what Sally rotten crotch spreading rumors about your crack addiction and
love for the Rebel Flag, and how you are heading up the Donald Trump campaign recruitment thru South Central LA — who cares what people write on a posting board. YOU ARE SHALLOW and need your FB

LIKE LIKE LIKE lets see if I can get 1000 friends for they must all like me!! YES Me!!!!!!!!!!!!